By
Temitope Olatunji
April 12th, 2024
Following the scandal with Cambridge Analytica at the time, Meta Platforms Inc said it has implemented a rigorous privacy campaign policy that has generally solidified its platform.
American multinational social and metaverse-focused company, Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META) has agreed to pay the sum of $725 million to settle a class action lawsuit involving the British political consulting firm, Cambridge Analytica to access millions of Facebook user’s personal information.
Meta Platforms and Cambridge Analytica Scandal
The settlement puts an end to the long protracted lawsuit that has been on since the scandal broke out in 2018. Cambridge Analytica played a major role in former President Donald Trump’s campaign and the firm profiled users’ data through Facebook without permission. Meta Platforms was indicted in the move as it was claimed that it allowed the consulting firm to harvest the personal information of millions of users through an application plugged into the social media’s network.
According to the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, this settlement payout will be the largest that has been linked to a privacy lawsuit in the United States and the largest paid out by the company.
“This historic settlement will provide meaningful relief to the class in this complex and novel privacy case,” the lead lawyers for the plaintiffs, Derek Loeser and Lesley Weaver, said in a joint statement.
In settling the case, Meta Platforms did not admit any wrongdoing and the settlement is subject to approval by a judge in California. According to Meta Platforms, its decision to settle is the best course of approach for its investors and community. Since no company does well in the face of a scandal or a lingering court case, the settlement push, if approved, may favor the company in the long run.
Following the scandal with Cambridge Analytica at the time, Meta Platforms Inc said it has implemented a rigorous privacy campaign policy that has generally solidified its platform.
“Over the last three years we revamped our approach to privacy and implemented a comprehensive privacy program,” Meta said.
Meta Platforms are Not Alien to Lawsuits
Of the big tech firms in the United States, Meta Platforms may come off as one of the most sued companies. As a custodian of data that is operating in a highly competitive data sphere, Meta Platforms are often pitched in lawsuits against regulators and the public as a whole.
Over the past few years, Meta Platforms have had to pay the sum of $5 billion in settlement to the Federal Trade Commission back in 2019 for privacy-related lawsuits at the time. In addition, Meta Platforms has had to pay $100 million in settlement to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on allegations that it misled investors on the misuse of users’ data.
Meta Platforms is not particularly in a healthy position financially as the strain in the global economy had a unique toll on its shares in the year-to-date period. However, the settlement will help it get back on its feet and focus on what truly matters for its growth moving forward.